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But the two researchers ran thousands of simulations to determine this might not be the case for exoplanets orbiting stars similar to our Sun.

Professor Kite said: “This really pushes back against the idea you need an Earth-clone – that is, a planet with some land and a shallow ocean.”

Life requires an incredibly long amount of time to develop and evolve which makes habitable exoplanets to spot.

This is because over time the light and heat on planets change as their stars age, which is why scientists typically search for planets similar to Earth.

Life in space: Ocean planets could be more habitable than previously thought (Image: GETTY)

These so-called Earth clones have an appropriate mix of water and land which keeps the planet’s climate in a status quo over time.

Earth is a prime example of how this geographical balance keeps the climate naturally stable.

Over incredibly long periods of time, the planet will draw greenhouse gases into minerals to cool itself down and release them back into the atmosphere through volcano eruptions to warm itself up again.

But this cycle cannot occur on water worlds where most of, if not the entire planet’s surface, is covered in water.